Why store your child’s extra paintings and drawings in the closet when you can create more art with them?

This concept didn’t occur to me until I heard about it from our parent/child class teacher. It was such a simple concept, but honestly, it never dawned on me that instead of saving piles upon piles of precious drawings and paintings, we could be re-creating them into something else and spreading the heartfelt love to others! Family members, friends, teachers, or whoever you chose will love the extra “home-made feel” of this idea.

The concept is open-ended and simple, and you can start at your next designated art time. Allow your children to create and express themselves as usual! We usually use a hardy construction paper for coloring (we use beeswax crayons) and watercolor paper for painting.

C creatively painting…

G expressively coloring…

After letting the paint dry (if applicable), the creative endeavors are limitless! Do what you wish.

As for us, we usually cut our paintings and drawings down to standard card size, while saving the rest of the creation for future cards or crafts, depending on the original size. Remember to fold the paper in half to resemble a card.

Then, we take our hole puncher and punch three holes into the crease of the paper.

After that, we take some twine and thread it through each hole into little bows.

Finally, we personalize our card with crayons and love… and there you have it! Recycled art for all to enjoy.

An example: My oldest’s watercolor painting-turned-thank-you-card. The inside contains sweet writing from all of us and lovely little drawings from the girls.